October 15, 2009

Psychic Warrior: Inside the CIA's Stargate Program: The True Story of a Soldier's Espionage and Awakening by David Morehouse, PhD (St. Martin's Press, 1996, ISBN: 0-312-14708-2)

This book was written by: David Morehouse, PhD, a former U.S. Army Ranger whose foray into the realm of the paranormal began when "we were in Jordan training Jordanian rangers—probably to kill Israelis"(p.26). During the assignment, Morehouse found that "the commander of the Jordanian Ranger battalion [....] hated the Israelis and showed no compunction when it came to talk of killing them"(p.27), and "to lose ourselves in the ways and stories of these men, so closely tied to two millennia of desert warriors, was enchanting"(p.33). Sadly, these idyllic days came to an end after a friendly-fire bullet induced visions that sent Morehouse into the U.S. army's remote viewing program.

What is in this book: An accounting of the other-worldly powers harnessed by the United States government that would sound like the paranoid rantings of a lunatic if coming from a less-credible source. "The government of the most powerful nation on the face of the earth has admitted that it knows humans can transcend time and space to view distant persons, places, things, and events, and that information thus gathered can be brought back. I hope you comprehend the significance of that information"(p.257) Morehouse was warned that "you'll be surprised what you see happening in the world around you as you progress in your training"(p.85), but he had no idea how deep the rabbit hole went. He read books on the development of remote viewing as a science, and "the books didn't mention the intelligence involvement, but evidence of government funding and management was all over the place"(p.83). In fact, "it was obvious when you took all the information in context that the U.S. government was heavily involved with parapsychological research on many fronts, not just in the area of remote viewing"(p.72). The fact that Morehouse was committed to the psychiatric ward of Womack Army Hospital and taking "forty milligrams of Loxitane (a powerful antipsychotic), sixty milligrams of Prozac (an antidepressant), six milligrams of Cogentin (to offset the tremors caused by the Loxitane), and thirty milligrams of Restoril (a tranquilizer)"(p.231, parentheses from the author) on a daily basis only shows what the government would do to keep him quiet.

What is not in this book: Vanity. Morehouse might appear resentful, but it's understandable considering that "once I'd been an officer 'destined to wear stars'; now I was a worthless outcast, still suffering from visions and nightmares unless I drugged myself with poisons"(p.234). Similarly, his wife now has to face the fact that "she'd married a strong, promising young infantry officer; sixteen years later, she had a devastated, empty shell of a man who could no more be a father and husband than he could care for himself, who was a melancholy testimonial to what he could have been"(p.235). Morehouse modestly refrains from dwelling on his wasted potential and singing his own praises. He lets the other characters in the story do that:

"Listen to what you're told, David; it's important. Not just to you, but to all humanity"(p.13)

"You possess a unique quality—a gift, if you will"(p.227)

"David promises to be one of the very best viewers we've ever produced"(p.97)

"You get on target faster than anyone I've seen"(p.136)

"I've never seen anyone get the images you did—that was excellent!"(p.109)

"You were on target almost instantly. You collected information that would have cracked the target wide open had this been an operational mission"(p.116)

"He's bilocated within seconds of receiving the coordinates. Nobody's ever done it that fast before"(p.112)

"He's fast, first of all. But that's not where it stops; he's accurate, as well"(p.120)

What do you know about the Secret Army of Northern Virginia? Nothing. I certainly didn't see them mentioned by name on page 46 or referenced later in the book when Morehouse discusses working for them.

Would you recommend this book to Patty Smyth? I think so. She's a little busy shooting at the walls of heartache and all, but she is the warrior. Granted, this book doesn't describe the nuts and bolts of the technology involved in psychic warfare beyond a line about "a specially designed bed like something from a science fiction movie"(p.7), but a warrior's life story might still be of interest to her.

Would you recommend this book to the General Accounting Office? Probably not. Morehouse notes that "there is a dark and perverted side to our army"(p.48), but he's tantalizingly vague on specifics besides a casual mention of affairs and fistfights. "I saw a watch the other day in a safe that cost the taxpayers more than I made in three years"(p.60), so at least we know that the army isn't scrimping on safes.

What was interesting about this book? Morehouse collaborated with Jim Marrs on a book about remote viewing. "Jim is a conscientious and modest man, who shared our fascination with remote viewing and with its potential to help mankind; he worked hard to pull our story together [....] I should mention that, to date, Jim's book has not been published"(p.197). It's a shame that Marrs hasn't been able to bring the truth about remote viewing to light, because "I believe that remote viewing for intelligence purposes remains now very fully funded, very hidden, and very protected—and is now very deadly"(p.251).